The Tascam US-122 MKII seamlessly continues the worldwide success of its predecessors, the US-122 and US-122L, offering improved recording quality from a USB MIDI interface further reduced in size. Since it doesn't require an additional power supply, this portable audio interface is perfect for creating stereo recordings with a laptop computer wherever you go. Or use it to substitute the on-board soundcard of your Windows or Macintosh computer to play back music or video files with better sound quality.

XLR microphone inputs with switchable phantom power and high-quality preamps are the basis for good-sounding recordings while input signals can be listened to by headphones with zero latency. Line-level sources or an instrument can be connected as well. The Tascam US-122 MKII has a mono switch, one MIDI input and one MIDI output, and a line output on RCA connectors.

The US-122MKII USB MIDI interface supports sample rates up to 24-bit/96kHz at resolution. While commercial audio CDs are produced at 44.1 kHz/16-bit, this interface offers you more than double the sample rate which means more detail for your recordings. (If you need four instead of two channels of simultaneous recording or playback and an additional digital I/O, have a look at the Tascam.

FEATURES

Provides two audio inputs and two audio outputs for a Windows or Macintosh computer

Two XLR mic inputs

Switchable phantom power (48 volt)

High-quality, low-noise mic preamps

Two analog line inputs (one switchable to high impedance for use with guitars, basses, etc.)

I have had one of these for at least two years. I have used it with multiple machines under both XP and Win7 x64. It seems to me that most of the complaints here...Read complete review

I have had one of these for at least two years. I have used it with multiple machines under both XP and Win7 x64. It seems to me that most of the complaints here are coming from Mac users or Win7 users. To the Mac people, I can only respond that maybe you ought to pick a platform that is more cost effective and practical for hardware devs to support; you'd think you'd start to get it when your complaints clog up every Internet review forum from free VST plugins to just about every low-cost USB interface out there.

As for the Win7 complaints, I'm here to tell you that the 122mkii *does* work just fine under Win7. Occasionally, and I do mean OCCASIONALLY, the interface *does* go a little nuts, creating the funky ASIO-buffer-related noises that a few other users cite... but this is a rare thing and easily resolved by unplugging the interface / plugging it back in. (As such, I guess I'd have a harder time recommending the 122mkII for live applications.) It's also worth noting that I had a harder time with the SPDIF-equipped 144mkII in this department; for whatever reason, it seemed a lot more glitch-prone than the 122.

Most of the time, my 122 works well for hours at a stretch. The mic preamps don't sound fantastic but they do get the job done for quick project recordings. It would be nice if the headphone amp had a little more oomph, which is a complaint I also have about the US-1800 I own. But overall, I have reasonable expectations for a unit at this price, and the 122 meets them just about as well or better than any other USB interface I've tried in the price range... and I've tried quite a few.

I do note that recently, there are some new options from the likes of Focusrite for a bit more that might be worth looking at for the supposedly better preamps alone. But at the time I bought the 122mkII, it was the best luck I'd had with any USB interface in the price range, and it has served me well on a lot of projects in the last few years.

VS

Most Liked Negative Review

Legacy hardware, USE ONLY WITH XP

IF you use windows XP AND ONLY WINDOWS XP, and you find this item on clearance, then it's worth messing with.

IF you use windows XP AND ONLY WINDOWS XP, and you find this item on clearance, then it's worth messing with.

But DO NOT attempt to use it in Windows 7. Get a unit that's up-to-date instead.

I originally had it running on windows XP, only minor issues, some latency etc.

Later I built a new system.With a clean install of windows 7 and updated drivers etc. YOU WILL EXPERIENCE DRIVER FAILURES, TERRIBLE PERFOMANCE SPIKES, AND EVEN BSOD's due to Tascam completely botching the windows 7 drivers for this device.

I thought it might be my PC's hardware. I was convinced that MUST be the case.

I was wrong, I wasted 2 days thinking I could solve the problem I've seen hundreds of forum posts begging for help on.

I attempted it on several windows 7 machines. Same or similar issues. The windows 7 drivers are HORRIBLE, they crash spectacularly.

Do not get this interface if you have a choice between it and a more modern unit!YOUR EXPERIENCE WILL BE A NIGHTMARE.

The funny part?Every forum post on this claims Tascam support told them they've never heard of this issue before.Nice...

It pays to check reviews on these things, and I hope I just saved you from a horrible nightmare.

I have had this and use it with a quad-core processor HP desk top. I use it with Mixcraft 6. I have never ever had a problem with it. It does a great job. Sound is excellent. This is a garbage in garbage out item. I used modified mics and they sound great so the Tascam sounds and works great. Mixcraft is easy to use with this interface. Best I ever used.

Just to get this out of the way, I use windows 7 64-bit. While I agree, the drivers are awful for windows 7, the BSODs and asio spikes are not as frequent as some people claim, so if you have windows 7 64-bit, do not be afraid to buy this if you cannot afford a more expensive one. Also, this interface was optimized to run hand in hand with cubase, so it will still run well with somthing else, just not as well as it will with cubase.

That being said, this is not a bad interface for the price. I use this to record guitars and vocals into cubase le5, and it does what its supposed to and it sounds decent. It is simple to use, the sound quality is average and the latency is almost non-existant. It has a pretty rugged construction too, seeing as the sides are made of metal. My only complaint is that if you tap the interface (like hit it or something), it will somehow pick up that sound, which has me a little concerned but I'm sure its nothing serious and I guess I can live with it.

For a little more money I know you can get a better interface, but some people like me cannot afford that. You get what you pay for, and FOR THE PRICE it's a pretty decent interface for begginers.

Don't understand the comments that this only works in WinXP, as I've used it for about 2 years now in both Vista 32-bit and Win7 64-bit environments with never a glitch. Updated the firmware to be safe, but had no problems before or after. Sound quality of the pre's is decent, and lag with supplied ASIO drivers is minimal, even with some latency tweaking to conserve RAM usage in the 32-bit system. Recommended.

I have had one of these for at least two years. I have used it with multiple machines under both XP and Win7 x64. It seems to me that most of the complaints here are coming from Mac users or Win7 users. To the Mac people, I can only respond that maybe you ought to pick a platform that is more cost effective and practical for hardware devs to support; you'd think you'd start to get it when your complaints clog up every Internet review forum from free VST plugins to just about every low-cost USB interface out there.

As for the Win7 complaints, I'm here to tell you that the 122mkii *does* work just fine under Win7. Occasionally, and I do mean OCCASIONALLY, the interface *does* go a little nuts, creating the funky ASIO-buffer-related noises that a few other users cite... but this is a rare thing and easily resolved by unplugging the interface / plugging it back in. (As such, I guess I'd have a harder time recommending the 122mkII for live applications.) It's also worth noting that I had a harder time with the SPDIF-equipped 144mkII in this department; for whatever reason, it seemed a lot more glitch-prone than the 122.

Most of the time, my 122 works well for hours at a stretch. The mic preamps don't sound fantastic but they do get the job done for quick project recordings. It would be nice if the headphone amp had a little more oomph, which is a complaint I also have about the US-1800 I own. But overall, I have reasonable expectations for a unit at this price, and the 122 meets them just about as well or better than any other USB interface I've tried in the price range... and I've tried quite a few.

I do note that recently, there are some new options from the likes of Focusrite for a bit more that might be worth looking at for the supposedly better preamps alone. But at the time I bought the 122mkII, it was the best luck I'd had with any USB interface in the price range, and it has served me well on a lot of projects in the last few years.

IF you use windows XP AND ONLY WINDOWS XP, and you find this item on clearance, then it's worth messing with.

But DO NOT attempt to use it in Windows 7. Get a unit that's up-to-date instead.

I originally had it running on windows XP, only minor issues, some latency etc.

Later I built a new system.With a clean install of windows 7 and updated drivers etc. YOU WILL EXPERIENCE DRIVER FAILURES, TERRIBLE PERFOMANCE SPIKES, AND EVEN BSOD's due to Tascam completely botching the windows 7 drivers for this device.

I thought it might be my PC's hardware. I was convinced that MUST be the case.

I was wrong, I wasted 2 days thinking I could solve the problem I've seen hundreds of forum posts begging for help on.

I attempted it on several windows 7 machines. Same or similar issues. The windows 7 drivers are HORRIBLE, they crash spectacularly.

Do not get this interface if you have a choice between it and a more modern unit!YOUR EXPERIENCE WILL BE A NIGHTMARE.

The funny part?Every forum post on this claims Tascam support told them they've never heard of this issue before.Nice...

It pays to check reviews on these things, and I hope I just saved you from a horrible nightmare.

I have had this interface for a while now and I have no complaints, the clicks and other noise issues others have had i had at first but I was able to get it running right. I have been pleased with this product and will continue use it

I bought the Tascam US-122MKII with high expectations. I assumed that teamed with my fairly new MacBook Pro and Garage Band, I would be able to plug a microphone and a keyboard into my computer and record. That just wasn't the case. I was able to record using my Ovation guitar but even after several hours of continuous reconfiguration, I wasn't able to get the vocals or keyboards recognized. I don't have a lot of time to spend on configuring equipment and at this stage in my life, I surely do not need the frustration. I am returning the unit and will probably invest in a newer USB full-featured keyboard.

I picked this unit up at my local GC to meet some very basic needs: get (2) mics into the computer for some self produced training videos with decent sound quality while bypassing the mic/line-in ports on my laptop. The features and price point of the Tascam unit were very attractive. Install of the drivers (from their website) went w/o a hitch on an Windows XP system. Audacity and Reaper worked with the unit w/o a problem. Sound quality: built-in preamps are on the weak side. With condenser (MXL) or dynamic (EV) mics the gain had to be turned up almost to the max resulting in noticeable hiss coming into the recording. The hiss was easy to remove via software. Running a mixer into the line inputs worked perfectly as I could dial down the gain on the Tascam unit and reduce most of the noise.Recording consistency: would occasionally snap, crackle, and pop while recording. I made sure Wifi, anti-virus, and firewall features were turned off on the laptop but that made no difference. Build quality: this is where there were inconsistencies. The unit is physically larger than it really needs to be. When you flip a switch on the unit you can hear an echo in the box. I would?ve liked a smaller unit for portability and storage reasons. Although the box itself is metal and feels sturdy the knobs an potentiometers don?t measure up. The pots don?t turn as smooth as other value-priced gear (ex: Art Tube MP preamp) and the knobs feel thin and cheap. In other words, the unit does not convey a sense of build quality compared to other gear in the price range. Overall: the interface works and the sound quality is quite good if you use the line ins and bypass the mic preamps. At its current price (~$97) it?s worth it for basic needs. I returned the item simply because the noise w/mics was an issue. I replaced it with a Lexicon Lambda which performs better.

I have been using this device for about a year and just with in the past month it started doing the same thing. Horrible noise issues screaming from the Tascam even when there is zero chance of crosstalk. As a AV and IT professional, this issue drove me mad! Finally , I boiled down to a hardware issue with the Tascam.I will be sending mine back to Tascam asap!Only one good thing came out of this nightmare. I hooked my old M-Audio Delta 1010lt that i almost forgot about. With the updated UI from M-Audio, this card is simply amazing.